Provides dedicated line item on property tax bill to
fund municipal free public libraries and joint free public libraries.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

As amended by the General Assembly on January 6, 2011.

An Actconcerning the raising of revenue for free
public libraries and joint free public libraries and amending various sections
of statutory law.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. R.S.40:54-8 is amended
to read as follows:

40:54-8. [The governing body or
appropriate board of]Within every municipality governed by this article there shall
annually [appropriate
and raise]be
raised by taxation a sum equal to one-third of a mill on every dollar of
assessable property within such municipality based on the equalized valuation
of such property as certified by the Director of the Division of Taxation in
the Department of the Treasury in accordance with the provisions of
R.S.54:4-49. The amount shall be assessed, levied and collected in the same
manner and at the same time as other municipal purposes taxes are assessed,
levied and collected therein and shall be paid from the disbursing officer to
the treasurer of the free public library1[at
the times annual appropriations for other departments of the municipality are paid
over]on a
quarterly basis. Following enactment of P.L. , c. (pending before the
Legislature as this bill), the director of the Division of Local Government
Services in the Department of Community Affairs shall decrease the
municipality’s adjusted tax levy pursuant to subsection d. of section 11 of
P.L.2007, c.62 (c.40A:4-45.46), so that there is no net impact on the amount of
the adjusted tax levy available to the municipality for non-library purposes
pursuant to section 9 of P.L.2007, c.62 (C.40A:4-45.44)1.

Such additional sum, as in the
judgment of [such]the municipal
governing body or appropriate board of the municipality, is
necessary for the proper maintenance of a free public library, may be
appropriated 1[and raised by taxation,
annually]in
the municipal budget from the general purposes municipal tax levy1.

(cf: P.L.1985, c.541, s.1)

2. Section 14 of P.L.1959,
c.155 (C.40:54-29.16) is amended to read as follows:

14. The board of trustees of
the joint library shall, not later than December 1 of each year, certify to the
respective municipalities the sum required for the operation of the joint
library for the ensuing year and the share of such sum to be borne by the
taxpayers in each of the municipalities in accordance with the method of
apportionment provided in the joint library agreement. If the governing body
of any of the municipalities objects to the amount or apportionment so
certified, it shall forthwith call a joint meeting of the governing bodies and
the board of trustees for the purpose of adjusting and settling any
differences. If the governing bodies of such municipalities cannot agree, the
matter shall be referred to the Director of the Division of Local Government Services
in the Department of Community Affairs for determination.

(cf: P.L.1959, c.155, s.14)

3. Section 15 of P.L.1959,
c.155 (C.40:54-29.17) is amended to read as follows:

15. [Each municipality shall appropriate
its]The
proportionate share of the sum so certified or agreed upon or determined in its
annual budget, shall [raise
the same]be
raised by taxation, pursuant to the provisions of R.S.54:4-49, and
shall [pay]be paid over [said share] to the disbursing
officer of the joint library 1[at the times annual
appropriations for other departments of the municipality are paid over]on a quarterly basis1. The amount
thus agreed upon shall be assessed, levied, and collected in the same manner
and at the same time as other municipal purposes taxes are assessed, levied and
collected. Operations under the budget and related matters shall be
subject to and in accordance with rules of the [local government board]Local Finance Board
in the Department of Community Affairs.

(cf: P.L.1959, c.155, s.15)

4. R.S.54:4-49 is amended
to read as follows:

54:4-49. (a) Except as to any
State tax at a fixed rate provided for in sections 54:4-50 and 54:4-51 of this
Title, each county board of taxation, after having received the tax lists and
duplicates of the assessors and having revised and corrected the same and
having equalized the aggregate valuations of all the real property in the
respective taxing districts, as required by R.S.54:3-17 to 54:3-19, shall,
after making adjustments for the debits and credits hereinafter mentioned,
apportion the amount to be raised in the respective taxing districts for State,
State school, county [and], free county
library, free public library, and joint free public library purposes and
for purposes of consolidated school districts and school districts comprising
two or more taxing districts, on the basis of the total valuation so
ascertained for each taxing district. The total valuation for each taxing
district, so ascertained, shall be known as the “apportionment valuation.”

(b) The amount to be
apportioned among the respective taxing districts shall be the amount to be
raised for the purposes specified in subsection (a), plus or minus the
difference between the total debits and total credits of the taxing districts
affected, determined as provided in subsection (c). The net amounts
respectively to be raised, after making allowance to the affected districts for
the debits and credits, shall be equivalent to the amount required for each of
the purposes specified in subsection (a).

(c) The net debit or credit
of each taxing district shall be the amount by which the taxing district has
overpaid or underpaid its share of the specific tax or taxes for the purposes
specified in subsection (a) for the preceding year or years because of
increases or decreases in the amount of the assessments of the district
subsequent to the apportionment in the preceding year or years by reason of
final judgments on appeals, complaints and applications, the correction of
clerical errors under R.S.54:4-53 and the allowance of additional veterans'
exemptions or deductions during the prior tax year by the collector pursuant
to law. When an assessment has been reduced or added to, or increased, on
appeal, complaint or other application, and the judgment on that appeal,
complaint or other application has been further appealed, no deduction or
increase as herein provided for shall be made with respect to the appealed
assessment until the further appeal has been finally determined.

(d) So that there shall be
uniformity of application and treatment under this section in all of the
counties, the Director, Division of Taxation, shall issue regulations for the
guidance of the county boards of taxation in the determination of the
apportionment valuations, the amounts to be apportioned and the amounts of the
debits and credits.

(cf: P.L.1975, c.212, s.38)

5. R.S.54:4-65 is amended
to read as follows:

54:4-65. a. The Director of
the Division of Local Government Services in the Department of Community
Affairs shall approve the form and content of property tax bills.

b. (1) Each tax bill shall
have printed thereon a brief tabulation showing the distribution of the amount
raised by taxation in the taxing district, in such form as to disclose the rate
per $100.00 of assessed valuation or the number of cents in each dollar paid by
the taxpayer which is to be used for the payment of State school taxes, other
State taxes, county taxes, local school expenditures, free public library
taxes, and other local expenditures. The last named item may be further
subdivided so as to show the amount for each of the several departments of the
municipal government. In lieu of printing such information on the tax bill,
any municipality may furnish the tabulation required hereunder and any other
pertinent information in a statement accompanying the mailing or delivery of
the tax bill.

(2) When a parcel receives a
homestead property tax credit pursuant to the provisions of P.L.2007, c.62 (C.18A:7F-37
et al.), the amount of the credit shall be included with the tax calculation as
a reduction in the total tax calculation for the year. One-half of the amount
of the credit shall be deducted from taxes otherwise due for the third
installment and the remaining one-half shall be deducted from taxes otherwise
due for the fourth installment.

(3) There shall be included
on or with the tax bill the delinquent interest rate or rates to be charged and
any end of year penalty that is authorized and any other such information that
the director may require from time to time.

c. The tax bill shall also
include a calculation stating the amounts of State aid and assistance received
by the municipality, school districts, special districts, free public libraries,
and county governments that offset property taxes that are otherwise due on
each parcel. The director shall certify to each tax collector the amounts of
said State aid and assistance that shall serve as the basis for the calculation
for each parcel. The director shall set standards for the calculation and
display of the statement on the tax bill.

d. The tax bill or form
mailed with the tax bill shall include thereon the date upon which each
installment is due.

e. If a property tax bill
includes in its calculation a homestead property tax credit, the bill shall, in
addition to the calculation showing taxes due, either display a notice
concerning the credit on the face of the property tax bill or with a separate
notice, with the content and wording as the director provides.